The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-02-04
Feen Smith Tries to Help His Case BY Sane
| tiOning Falsifications Of the Senate'S
Journal of Proceedings
4 Memorial To Be Presented Showing
the Fraudulent Phases Of the Case.
Indignation of the Knights of Labor Over the
Treachery of Robinson-His Efforts to
Explain His Perfidious Change.


may be called, under which the joint conventions,
mp to and including that Of Wednesday. were
held. went in defining the exact position of Sen
ator A. G, Smith in that body, came up in the
Senate ard House yesterday. Senator Smith,
rs do all the Democrats, of course, presumed
hat it made him. without qualification or reser
walton, the presiding officer of the convention.
Aasuch. he ara his ever-ready majority claim
Shat he, and only he had the right to declare the
sffect. as well as the result, of the voting. In
other words, if he said Turpie was elected Sena-
tor, it is decision that should 60 upon the rec
ord unquestioned. This is akin to the repeated
assumptions of the Democrats in seeking to con-
troll events averse to their purposes. Speaker
Eayre has had the direct management of the
convention. and, consistent with this, he de-
clared there was no election, while Senator
ninth, taking advantage Of the courtesy allowed
! Nm to merely announce the vote of the Senate
ant the total Of the two houses, continued in an
effort to perfect the proceedings, as he thought,
! - Announcing Turpie the Senator-elect. He
was promptly checked by Speaker Sayre, who
not only vigorously declared there had been no
election, but Senator Smith was by no means,
''either under the law or the agreement presid-
ing Omcer OF the convention. Wnen senator
Smith is away from the full protection of his ma
tority, which is supposed to wait always upon
che direction of the available Senator Bailey, the
slightest obstruction will trip him up The
clear and decisive protest of the Speaker upset
him, and with a fearful failure at good humor he
tried to recover himself by saying, "Oh, that's
all right" However, the Democrats demanded
he should say something that would round off
the alleged election with formal announce
ment. Senator Smiths voice was drowned in
the uproar IL is what he claims to have said in
this regard that the Democrats attempted to get
on the records Of the House In the Senate the
Republicans attacked it as not part of the pro-
ceedings, because Senator Smith had no right to
declare an election, and wanted it erased. They
also insisted that the declaration Of Speaker
Sayre. the presiding officer of the convention,
should not be omitted. which the Secretary of
the Senate had done. Out of this followed
great deal Of warm discussion in the Senate,
over which Senator Smith presided with his
quilts up his courage renewed by being once
more where reckless majority would back him
In anything he might say or do. matter how
supplementary. unconstitutional, illegal or
tyrannical it might be.
The Secretary in yending his minutes Of the
where Senator Smith was referred to as the
presiding officer and as having declared the re-
suit as final, when Senator Huston objected.
But Senator Smith, always jealous of any al
fusion to his doubtful prerogatives. remarked:
'.What he has read is just exactly what said. ,
This was the first Haunting for the day OF the
red flag by anarchcal- Democratic controllers Of
the Senate.
II ask in all fairness and all candor,' said
Senator Huston, ''and l think 1t but right, 1
think. it but proper, and think it but just. and
i don't see that it can do the majority on this
floor any harm to have it done, that the words
of the Speaker of the House of Representatives,
who was equally the presiding officer of the joint
convention, shall also be made a part of the
record"
1.-THE Chair desires to state,' testify replied
Senator Smith, conscious of the eyes Of the ma
jority being on him, with all kindness and re-
epecs-for the Senator from Fayette knows what
the feeling of the Chair is for him, and all other
Republican Senators-that the language of the
Speaker of the House of Representatives was in
decent, and in violation of the agreement that
was made 1t can't e. into this record"
II feel that the refusal of this right" said
Senator Huston, with decsiveness that en-
phaszed every word, sis An outrage unparal-
lelsd in the history Of legislation il. Indiana"
'The Chair desires to state" blushingly re-
marked Senator Smith, his voice losing it's nat
bral persuasiveness, as it went to the nigh pitch
OF rising wrath, 'the Chair desires 30 state and
repeat with all frmnees, and with respect to the
Eenator-casting no reflection upon him or his
colleagues, that the language of the Speaker Of
the House of Representatives was in violation Of
an agreement made and enteredinto by the Sen
ator himself. 1t was cowardly, gross and indie
cent. Now. this would not have been said ha6
this question not come up. 1t was both in vic
lation of the agreement, l repeat, and it was
gross. it was cowardly, it vas indecent" AS ht
hit the gavel block a whack, there was only
wanting the utterance, Now what's the matter
wild yer, knock that chip off my shoulder, d,
yer hear me, say" to complete the picture.
''The Speaker of the House of Representa-
tives,p replied Senator Huston, ''has not tn,
right to come upon this floor to defend him
self"
II wish he had" loudly proclaimed Senator
Smith: II would like TO meet him." 1t was lef
to inference that the Senator meant to say. lie
him come on. l am in my own bailiwck now
with my trusty and thrice valued warrior, Bale,
right over there"
Otherwise continued Senator Huston, as Il
taking no account of the Interruption she could
defend himself. He evidenced yesterday tha
he had sand enough to take his own part
ask that the minority shall have the right"
There is nothing before the house." Senator
Bailey put In, after having received wink o
direction from Senator Smith. A notion how
ever, came from Senator Huston to insert In tn
journal of the Senate the words, 'The Speake
of the House. as presiding officer OF the join
convention, announced that no person had re
ceived a majority of the legal votes cast and
therefore, nobody had been elected This wa
promptly crushed out by the whole OF the Demo
cratic majority throwing It's entlre Welgn
against it. Senator Denote then stepped to tn
front with motion only a little less exaspsrat
ing than that of Senior Huston. He wante
the words President of the joint convention
wherever they occur after the name of the Hor
A. 6. Smith, obliterated. He said that nowher
in the agreement SO often referred TO does it al
pear that the President of the Senate is the pre-
nding officer of the joint convention On tn
contrary, it appears that the presiding officer c
the Joint convention is the Hon. w. e. Sayrt
the Speaker of the House of Representative
therefore the declaration of the President of th
Senate was unwarranted in fact and contrary I
the agreement Senator Bailey, as custodian
that precious privilege of the majority, the pr,
vious question passed It over TO Senator Seller
80 that ne could have tho honor of applying it
least once before the General Assembly closed
It was done of course, with the usual result
But Senator Denote was not inclined to let tt